


Love at First Sight in Five Acts

by MadameFool



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU - Modern Setting, Architect!James, Comedy, F/M, Lily is kinda dramatic in this, Medstudent!Lily, Valentine's Day, alternative universe, but the precious type, jily, jily fandom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-04-06
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:06:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,831
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22727365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadameFool/pseuds/MadameFool
Summary: Lily thinks dehydration.Lily thinks meningioma.Lily thinks neurosyphilis.Lily thinks she’s being really fucking ridiculous.But it's only love.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 39
Kudos: 64





	1. Three Makes For A Crowded Place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gotta admit: this is what I call in my mind one of my "trash" fics. As in: it sprung to life because I had one dumb idea for a scene but not more and now I'm kinda half-assing my way around that one idea. But I can promise that it's fun. I'll tell you where the inspiration came from at the end :)

**ACT I : Three Makes For A Crowded Place**

He enters the stage of her life on a Friday morning as her train is thundering through London’s underground.

Lily is on her commute to work and it’s not pretty. It's 7.11AM and sure, she has put her make up on and she is wearing a smart, navy dress, but last she checked she still looked like a lorry had reverse parked on her face. The tube is filled with tourists, who think they'll be the only ones who thought about getting up early. She assumes they're on their way to snap a photo of Big Ben or some other tourist trap. In any case they're loud and obnoxious and Lily can't wait to get off, even if that means being back at the hospital a little sooner.

Then, as the tube slows down at Westminster Station, something happens that Lily never believed to be real. Letting her eyes wander over the people standing on the platform, her gaze gets stuck on a mop of wild, black hair.

And so time stops.

The hair is attached to a man wearing a classic trench coat over a white shirt and jeans and it takes Lily only a second to decide, that this is the most gorgeous human being she has ever laid eyes upon and that she is, in fact, in love.

In this instant she experiences such a ridiculous high – a rush of euphoria so powerful that her mouth goes dry – that she’s actually tempted to look around herself for whoever must have dosed her with fentanyl, because this is decidedly _not_ normal.

Lily thinks dehydration.  
Lily thinks meningioma.  
Lily thinks neurosyphilis.

Lily thinks she’s being really fucking ridiculous.

But that doesn’t stop her from hungrily consuming the sight of him – from dark rimmed glasses to olive skin – she shamelessly eats him with her eyes, like she has never done to a man before.

When the train comes to a halt, she’s so far gone that she goes stumbling into the people around her, because her arms have gone slack at her sides instead of holding onto a bar, as they should.

Still, time is malfunctioning and as she keeps watching him through her hair floating in slow motion, he does something she thinks she'll never forget in her life: he turns, their eyes meet and this stranger – this beautiful, _beautiful_ stranger – starts smiling at her. It's a slightly crooked smile, the left corner of his mouth pulls up a bit higher, giving him a mischievous air.

It goes straight through her.

It’s filling her with light and warmth and a curious sense of wonder that such a marvelous thing should be bestowed upon her of all people.

Lily has never believed in love at first sight – she barely believes in any type of love at this point – but she smiles back at him, allowing herself to be swept up by the moment. Maybe it’s hypoglycaemia (she’s skipped breakfast again), maybe it’s the exhaustion (Lily is in her second year of speciality training) or maybe, just maybe, this is real and she somehow managed to manifest the man of her dreams in this dirty tube station at 7 in the morning.

Then the train stops and time snaps back to its normal speed.

The doors slide open and people start to push themselves out of the car like lava making its way through the landscape. He's still smiling at her and – oh god – he's moving towards her now, too.

And Lily realizes she doesn't know what to do.

Despite having been forced to watch romantic comedies by the dozen, she has no idea what follows now. Do they break out in song? Is she allowed to jump into his arms dirty dancing style? Will the crowd miraculously move around them as they kiss on the platform?

She doesn't know. She really doesn't _know_ , but she also doesn't care because this is too special, too precious and she doesn't want to spoil the sheer magic of it with her overthinking.

He's almost in front of her now, just a few more steps – and Lily is _ready._

Ready for whatever this might turn out to be. Miraculously unafraid and, for once, open to letting herself be carried whereever by her feelings. She feels brave all of a sudden, not thinking anymore about what all the night shifts might have done to her face.

Then, as he's only a meter or so away, he –

He –

He –

He bends down to the petite blonde right in front of her – a plain woman Lily hadn't paid attention to at all – and he _embraces_ her.

Tightly. Intimately. _Lovingly._

Lily has to clasp a hand over her mouth to keep from giving a pathetic gasp at the tragic scene unfolding before her.

She quickly steps around the couple, her heart still pumping hard from all the built up anticipation, and walks towards the nearest exit. Her brain screams _flight!_ at her and her field of vision has narrowed in on the «WAY OUT» signs, but right before she reaches the last escalator some cruel masochism apparently inherent to her makes her stop and look back.

They are right behind her.

He has one arm around her shoulder now, pulling her close while they're both laughing at something and Lily tries not to imagine that they're making fun of her. They look like they've known each other for ages – the way she rolls her eyes at him, how he playfully pokes her sides.

It's downright _painful._

And still, Lily can't stop herself from pretending to study the tube map on the wall until they've passed her and then, because she is truly, extraordinarily stupid, she follows them out of the station. Luckily for her, they seem to walk in her direction, exiting the station and crossing Westminster bridge. Like a fucking creep, she keeps close enough to listen in on their conversation.

“Alright, that _is_ true,” the Blonde says, and Lily can't help but notice what a sweet voice she has, “but I still feel bad, that you came all the way here only because of me.”

“Bollocks, Ava,” he says, “what else would I be doing?”

“I don't know – maybe not wrestling American tourists on your day off, though,” she replies with a disdainful look towards a particularly loud group that is blocking the sidewalk in order to take some photos.

“I'm planning to come back later and photobomb as many of their pictures as possible.”

He looks down at her, seemingly gauging her reaction, but she’s still scrunching up her nose at the group.

“What? No reprimands? No, _Don't be mean, James!_ ?“ he asks amused.

( _James_? Fuck, his name was perfect too...)

“You know, I might even join you, if they continue to screech like that.”

He laughs at that.

(It’s a beautiful laugh.)

Lily is still trudging behind them, trying not to start crying or otherwise losing her shit, when she notices that they start walking towards the Evelina, the children’s hospital she’s currently working at.

“How about you use your free time instead to come have dinner at my parent’s place?“

“I’m not driving out to Buckinghamshire, if I have to be here at 8 again tomorrow,“ she groans in response.

Lily almost groans, too: Dinner with his _parents –_ ugh.

To make things worse – although she didn’t believe it to be possible – they were almost at the staff entrance now and Ava, for that seems to be her name, turns toward the love of Lily’s life and says: “Well, it was lovely getting walked here, as was the coffee and the danish.“ She smiles warmly at him, holding up an empty wrapper.

Jesus Christ, Lily had been so absorbed by her thoughts, that she hadn’t even noticed that he had brought her breakfast.

He had brought her breakfast. At 7am. On his day off.

Godfuckingdammit.

She suddenly can’t bear it anymore and quickly steps around the two, holds her card up to the reader and slipps through the door the second it opens.

Fuck. 

Fuck.

_Fuck._

It wasn’t fair.

Why would her brain chemistry or the universe or whoever make her believe she had just met the love of her life when that man was clearly busy being perfect for someone else?

She changes into her scrubs, pins up her hair, all the while grumbling to herself, until one of her colleagues appears next to her.

“Morning, Lily,“ Sanam says, checking her headscarf in the mirror.

“Mrhmpf.“

Sanam turns, surprised at Lily’s uncharacteristic grumpiness. “Are you quite alright there?“

Lily is debating for a moment if she should say anything and, if so, what. Sanam and Lily haven’t known eachother for long and the other woman is of a decidedly pragmatic nature. Telling her what she thought had just transpired might certainly result in ridicule and although such would be well deserved, she doesn’t think her ego could bear it.

“I’m just being an idiot,“ she mutters instead, but that doesn’t seem to appease her fellow surgeon.

“You’re not an idiot otherwise you wouldn’t be here, Lily,“ Sanam scoffs and exits the staff changing room.

Lily says nothing but trails close behind her. She is about to tell Sanam a less dramatic version of what just happened at the tube station, when she sees how Mary has decorated the nurses’ station: the whole door frame is covered in red, plastic roses and a big sign reads HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY to top if off.

“It’s Valentine’s Day,“ Lily chokes out.

Sanam shrugs. “Capitalist hogwash, if you ask me.“

A strange, high-pitched sound escapes Lily and the other woman spins around to look at her.

“Lily, are you sure you’re not sick or something?“

She tries to laugh in response, but it doesn’t sound right.

“Fuck, I might be.“

Lovesick, that is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So on the 30th of October I kinda had a moment like Lily: when the metro stopped I saw this insane James Potter look alike staring at me and I nearly lost it, only to realize ten seconds later that he was looking at the woman in front of me – incidentally a redhead. Aaaand that got me started to write this.
> 
> Reviews are so so so appreciated!


	2. Something Wicked This Way Comes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear readers!  
> I wanted to have this up on Saturday but then I had a massive panic attack and it fucked up my whole weekend so here we are instead. Hope you'll like it!

**ACT II : Something Wicked This Way Comes**

**SCENE I: ENTER – A Stranger**

Of course, admitting to someone as straight laced as Sanam that one might be ill did not bode well.

“Lily Evans, you know you’re not supposed to come to work if you’re sick!“

At that Mary Macdonald’s curly haired head appears promptly in the heavily decorated door to the nurses’ station.

“You’re sick?!“

Sanam turns towards her, obviously happy for the support. “She says so and she’s behaving all strange, too.“

In an instant, Mary is at Lily’s side checking her temperature but the redhead swats away her friend’s hands.

“Leave me alone,“ Lily mutters irritably, “it’s not like that.“

“You’re kind of warm though.“

“It’s because I–“ but Lily stops herself because Sanam is still standing there, “listen, I’m not sick – promise!– but can I have a moment with Mary please?“

Sanam doesn’t look convinced but she grabs a stack of patient files nevertheless and turns on her heel. “But just so you know, Evans, I’m calling dibs on the appendectomies!“

“Wait – am I stuck with tonsillectomies again?“

Sanam gives her one of her rare smiles before disappearing around the corner.

“Fucking tonsils are a pain in my arse,“ Lily sighs and lets herself slump against the nearest wall.

Mary just rolls her eyes and pokes her with a pen. “Don’t try to distract me! What’s going on?“

Well…

How should Lily – perpetually opposed to sappy, romantic feelings and always level headed – explain that she had just experienced something straight from a Hollywood romance, only to have that precious moment ripped from her immediately.

“I think, I just fell in love,“ she blurts out.

Mary raises a skeptical eyebrow. “I hope you mean me and not Sanam.“

Lily swats her. “I’m being serious, you tit.“

There is a moment of silence in which Mary looks at her as if she’d just confessed to murder.

“You…actually are?“

Lily sighs and pulls Mary a way down the corridor, away from potential eavesdroppers. In her head she’s mulling over how she wants to tell her story but every which way she turns it sounds silly.

“I was on the train…“

“And?“

She takes a deep breath. “There was this man on the platform and he was just–,“ Lily helplessly throws her arms up, unable to convey the sheer magic of the moment.

Mary watches her silently but clearly amused as she struggles to find the right words.

“I don’t know, but he was… _perfect_? Like, actually perfect?!“

“Okay…“ Mary doesn’t even try to hide her disbelief but Lily can’t hold it in anymore and so she blurts it all out. From how he was dressed to his dimples to how his voice sounded.

“And his name is James – _James_! It’s such a good name!“

“Yeah well, it certainly isn’t as bad as your last dates.“

“Right?! I can’t believe I slept with a guy named ‘Macaulay’.“

“Let’s not forget ‘Clarence’ and ‘Arnold’.“

Lily slaps Mary’s arm in response but she’s also relieved because having said it out loud and not being laughed at is making her already feel better. Lighter somehow.

“So,“ Mary drawls, “when will you see _James_ again?“

And with that the boulder drops straight back into Lily’s stomach.

“I…I don’t think…I mean…–“

Mary raises a questioning eyebrow.

“I mean, I haven’t talked to him or anything.“

“How do you know his name then?“ Mary is many things and among them excellent at interrogating her friends when they least want it.

Which is why Lily cracks so easily.

“I just overheard…“

“Go on.“

Lily takes a deep breath. “When his girlfriend said it.“

Mary groans and Lily quickly blurts out the rest of the awful affair all the way from her near catastrophy on the platform to her disgraceful stalking right up to the hospital doors.

She expects scolding or finally some ridicule but she gets pity instead.

“Oh Lily, you’re asleep at the wheel!“

“What – what’s that supposed to mean?“

Mary clucks her tongue. “This is so not like you, love. You’ve had too many shifts in the last two weeks plus you’re eating trash as always. It’s drained you and now you’re delusional.“

“I’m not delusional – he _really_ was that fit,“ Lily tries to defend herself.

“Maybe he was,“ Mary amends, “but you’re a grown ass woman and you’d never pop your cork over a bloke if it weren’t for the exhaustion, don’t you see that?“

There is truth to what her best friend says. Lily knows it. Yet she can’t shake the conviction that what she felt was _real_ even beyond her own lamentable state.

“Anyways,“ Mary continues, obviously taking her silence for agreement, “this’ll blow over soon enough.“

Lily blinks at her. “Blow over?“

“Yeah, you know his first name and what he looks like, how do you think you’ll find him with that? This is London – you’ll probably never see him again and considering he has a girlfriend that’s actually for the best.“

She hadn’t thought about that but the revelation hits her like a bus at full speed.

He is _gone_.

Lost to the city.

She can’t even stalk his social media or something equally pathetic.

Mary seems to gauge the depths of despair Lily’s finding herself in, because she puts a reassuring arm around her. “There, there darling! You have this weekend off, you’ll have a good night’s sleep then and get over it, I’m sure you will.“

She steers her back to the nurses station, grabs a few patient files and shoves them into Lily’s arms.

“Now come on, you don’t want McGonagall to think you’re late.“

Mary walks her up to her boss’s office where Sanam is already waiting.

“Oh good,“ she says to them, “I was just about to send you a message. McGonagall wants to speak to us.“

Lily is about to reply when the door is swung open and Dr. McGonagall emerges with –

With–

With–

“Ah, good morning everyone,“ McGonagall greets them, sporting a small smile, “I was just welcoming your new colleague: Dr. Ava Bates is starting her speciality training as a surgeon today.“

The blonde.

His girlfriend.

Her nemesis.

_The bane of her –_

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all,“ she says sweetly and holds out her hand to Mary.

“Welcome to the Evelina! My name is Mary Macdonald, I’m the Matron of our Mountain ward, it’s our HDU. Will you be assigned to a specific ward or rotate?“

Ava shakes Mary’s hand enthusiastically. “Thank you! I was just told, I will be rotating, starting in the paediatric intensiv care unit.“

“Sanam Fazal, it’s a pleasure.“ More hand shaking. “Dr. Lily Evans and I are both in our second year speciality training, I think we’ll get to work together a lot.“

_Fuck._

They will, won’t they?

“I sure look forward to it!“ Ava replies cheerfully.

Finally, she turns to Lily who is still frozen in mortification.

“And you must be Dr. Evans then? I think it’s lovely that we have a team with so many women, what a change that will be from the last few years!“

Ava’s warm palm wraps around her limp, clammy hand and Lily is ready to die on the spot. She barely registers the ongoing small talk around her until Mary claps her on the back.

“It was lovely to meet you, but we have to get going. Nine year old Beatrice can’t wait to go home and we’ll have to do a release check up.“

“Yes, of course,“ Ava hums. She glances at the documents McGonagall has given her. “I’ll make my way to the Forest ward then.“

“It’s right around the corner here.“ Mary points somewhere to the right behind Sanam.

“Oh, thank you, I was just about to ask!“

“See you around, Dr. Bates.“

“Please, call me Ava.“

“Come along then,“ Sanam says, as usually disinterested in chit chat, “you can properly get to know eachother over lunch later.“

Mary inclines her head at the two surgeons before swiftly turning around and pulling Lily with her. As soon as they make it to the lift and the doors close, Lily collapses against the back wall with a growl.

“Jesus, Lily,“ Mary scolds, “whatever is wrong with you? She was so nice and you were standing there like a cinder block!“

“Mary,“ Lily whispers breathlessly, “it’s _her_.“

“What do you mean 'it’s her'?“

“Her. His girlfriend.“

Mary’s eyes go wide. “Bloody hell.“

“Yeah.“

“You’re really unlucky, love.“

“No shit,“ Lily whines and covers her face with her hands. “No shit.“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reviews significantly increase my writing speed and my life expectancy. I'm sure there's a study about it somewhere.


	3. Enter: A Friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!
> 
> I didn't expect this to take me so long, but good old SARS-CoV-2 derailed me from pretty much everything. Also since I will include some hospital scenes I decided to rewrite things a bit – it seemed kinda cheap otherwise, even though I hadn't planned for a health care crisis back in November when I started drafting this.  
> I also realized that I should've added certain elements to the last chapter, so this will have roughly 7 instead of 5 chapters.

**ACT II : Something Wicked This Way Comes**

**SCENE II: ENTER – A Friend**

The rest of her morning passes painfully slowly.

Lily is perpetually on the lookout for Ava, afraid that she’ll do something embarrassing in the other surgeon’s presence.

  
On the bright side though, she has managed to calm down far enough to see the truth in Mary’s words.   
Yes, she only smells fresh air on her walk to work.   
Yes, she hasn’t slept more than five hours a night since Christmas.   
Yes, none of her last ten meals contained a single vitamin that hadn’t been added artificially.   
Yes, all of this is messing her up and if Mary continues to be right, a calm weekend with a few extra hours of sleep and good food should reset her properly.

But while Mary is right about some things – she wouldn’t normally lose her mind over a bloke, no matter how fit he might be – Mary isn’t right about everything. Lily still feels inclined to hold on to the belief that he is somehow special. And having to work with his bloody girlfriend won’t let her sleep deprived brain calm down and get any perspective on the matter.

She can’t stop ruminating.

What if he is as perfect as she believes him to be?   
What if he is a thoughtful boyfriend all the time and not just on Valentine’s Day?   
What if he will give her ample material to obsess about – will he walk her to work often?   
Maybe wait for her at the end of her shift?   
Bring her lunch?

Lily quickly looks up from her reheated burrito to peek around the cafeteria, both excited and terrified at the prospect of the messy haired man lingering somewhere.   
But instead of James she sees Mary entering the room.

“I swear to God this place makes me want to remove my uterus sometimes,“ she sighs and plops down next to Lily, immediately digging into her food.

Lily, for her part, has lost what little appetite she had. “So?“

“So what?“

“Tell me!“

“Tell you what?“ Lily holds back on rolling her eyes. But just barely. “Did you work with her? You must have.“

Mary takes her time chewing a stripe of chicken before she answers. “Yes, I have, you absolute psycho.“

“And?“

Mary puts down her fork. “Bloody hell, Lily, can you not?“

Lily picks at the aluminum foil around her burrito, not looking at her friend. “Can’t we pretend this is some lighthearted gossip about our new colleague?“

Finally, Mary lets out a deep sigh. “She’s really nice.“

Lily’s eyes snap up. “Like… _nice_ nice or just nice?“

For a moment Mary looks like she might refuse to answer. She takes another mouthful of her dish and chews it thoughtfully. “She’s Rory Gilmore-nice if ‘A Year in the Life’ hadn’t ever aired.“

"Wow.“ Lily swallows hard.

Mary leans over the table, taking one of her hands. “I’m sorry to tell you this, but I really like her.“

“No, please, don’t be!“ Lily quickly shakes her head. “I’ll calm down or whatever and then it’ll be good that…that she’s nice.“

Mary squeezes her hand and is about to say something but –

“May I sit with you?“

They both look up and, lo and behold, there’s Ava standing in the door.

“Of course,“ Lily says, giving the blonde what she hopes to be a smile and not a creepy grimace.

Ava delicately puts down her tray and, as if to prove Mary’s point, there’s a copy of Louisa May Alcott’s ‘Little Women’ next to her Cornish pasty. “I want to read it before I watch the movie,“ Ava says shyly, which makes Lily realize that she’s been staring at the book like a dolt.

Mary quickly steps in. “Have you seen any of the older adaptations?“

“No, I haven’t, it’s a shame really.“

The two quickly fall into a conversation about favorite movies but Lily remains silent, observing the newcomer.

Mary is right – Ava is nice.

She seems to be one of those genuinely sweet, kinda sunshine-y people and Lily feels bad for having immediately categorized her as ‘plain’ when she first saw her. Although – and that is her pride speaking – it is sort of true. Their new colleague is blonde and she has that delicate, girly-girl thing going for her, but otherwise there is nothing remarkable about her. Her features are soft, except for her slightly aquiline nose. And maybe her eyes, Lily concedes. She has nice eyes. They’re a very dark brown and have a certain bambi like quality to them.

“Lily, can you hear me?“ Mary’s pointed question snaps her out of her petty analysis and Lily jumps, almost throwing her burrito off the table.

“What? I mean – yeah, yes, sure! Sorry, I’m just…“

Mary sighs in that way of hers, that indicates that she’ll give Lily shit for her behavior the second they are done with their shift. She turns back to Ava who is looking at them expactantly. “She’s normally not like this,“ Mary says, “she just hasn’t slept enough.“

“Uhm, yeah. I – I’m really not,“ Lily quickly agrees. “Sorry, what were you saying?“

Ava gives her a benevolent smile before she repeats what must’ve been the question that Lily zoned out. “I was just asking, if you’ve seen any of the movies that were honored at the Oscar’s on Monday?“

“Oh.“

Lily’s brain is slow. Too slow for such a refined question. “No, I – I haven’t. I mean, I mostly just rewatch the same two, three shows on Netflix.“

Ava nods sagely. “Same here. I don’t dare to waste the few free hours I have on something I might not like.“

“God, isn’t that just true,“ Mary groans in agreement.

“Well, what are your staples then?“ Ava asks around.

“Stranger Things,“ Mary chirps, “and Orphan Black, for sure!“

“For me it’s Peaky Blinders,“ Lily muses. “I used to love House of Cards but a certain someone ruined that for me,“ she ads, although admitting as much makes her a bit nervous.

Ava gives her a sympathetic eye roll. “Oh, I get that. So much I can’t fully enjoy anymore, they even ruined Gilmore Girls with that stupid sequel.“

Mary gives Lily a triumphant _You see how utterly right I was?_ – smile before she starts an emphathetic plea for the redemption of Emily Gilmore that will probably take up the remainder of their lunch break.

Lily, who isn’t in the mood risk anything stupid coming out of her mouth, resolves to just quietly observe the two as they fall into a heated debate about who Rory’s baby father might be. Funnily enough, she finds herself agreeing more often with Ava than with Mary. Not a feat, considering that Mary tends to have a rather weird palette be it concerning movies, clothes or men, but still: Mary is her friend for a reason, so it does count for something.

The one thing about Ava that irritates her is how often she checks her phone.

As if she had just read her mind, Ava looks up apologetically and says: “Sorry for this! I’m normally not glued to my phone like a fifteen year old, but I was really nervous about starting here, so everyone is checking in.“

“Aww, that’s cute though,“ Mary replies good naturedly, before throwing Lily an imperious glance.

Apparently she’s been quiet for too long to still appear somewhat normal.

Lily clears her throat. “So how do you like it so far?“

“Oh, I love it! I mean, the transition was a bit harsh – I was volunteering in Northampton until yesterday and I arrived really late last night, but the hospital is great. I can’t wait to work with McGonagall!“

“You’ll love her,“ Lily feels obliged to say, “she’s really a class of her own.“

Ava is beaming. “I can’t believe I got this spot – and in London, too!“

“Wotcher,“ Sanam calls curtly and sits down next to Lily. Without as much as a glance, she starts to unpack her lunch.

They greet her back, to which she only nods, entirely focused on her microwaved meal.

“So you haven’t lived here before?“ Mary pick ups where they left off, though not without unsubtly rolling her eyes at their standoffish colleague.

“Well, no I haven’t, but I grew up just outside Amersham, so we were often in the city and now all my friends moved here, so it’s nice to be closer –“

“Amersham, you said?“ Sanam surprisingly pipes in.

Ava blinks and takes a second longer to reply, than seems usual for her otherwise chipper attitude. “Yes – yes, just outside. Little Crown’s Hill? Maybe you know it?“

Sanam gives the newcomer a smug grin. “Rich, eh?“ she drawls, but even though she says it like a question, she doesn’t wait for an answer and goes back to stuffing her face with what seems to be Pasta Alfredo.

Mary huffs and demonstratively turns back to Ava. “It’s nice to be closer, you were saying?“

“Oh, yes,“ Ava seems to not have entirely snapped out of the confusion that Sanam introduced to their small talk, “it’s uhm nice, yeah, closer to – to everyone now.“

They talk a bit more about living in London and although Mary remains politely attentive, Lily can tell, that her attitude has shifted just a bit. Neither Mary or Lily consider Sanam someone they would invite to their wedding, but if there’s one thing the three have in common it’s having grown up in working class families and being bloody proud of it, too.

Lily is about to ask, where Ava went to medical school when a trauma nurse throws the door open. “You three,“ she calls harshly, pointing at Mary, Lily and Sanam, “we need you down in A&E. Gas explosion at a nursery school in Limehouse. Fourteen children will arrive here in 10minutes.“

The adrenaline rushes through Lily with an intensity that puts her silly crush from this morning to shame.

For a second, she is frozen with guilt for how she has behaved. How could she have been so dramatic about some stupid man when there were things like this happening?!

She quickly stands up and is about to follow Mary and Sanam who are already out the door, when the nurse addresses her. “That one a doctor too?“ she asks pointing at Ava, who hasn’t moved but is staring at them, her doe eyes wide open.

Lily nods. “Surgeon. First year speciality.“

“Well, today she’s trauma,“ the nurse barks, “pull her along!“

A part of Lily wants to laugh at that, because yes, indeed, this morning she would’ve described the sight of Ava as trauma too, albeit for entirely different reasons.

She doesn’t though, because – and she realizes that now – she has already developed some kind of fondness for the petite woman. 

Lily can always tell – she is horrible when it comes to love interests, but she can always tell with potential friendships and she smells a great one with Ava.

She gently lifts her up by the forearm. “First time?“ she asks the Blonde who still seems shellstruck.

Ava nods in response and follows her out of the room.

“It’ll be fine,“ Lily tries to smile, “it’s not that different from what we usually do. Just more at once. And we need to be faster.“

With the way Ava keeps staring at the floor and her lips tightly pressed together, she reminds Lily of herself. She’d been in foundation training during the Grenfell Tower fire. Lily doesn’t let go of Ava’s arm until they arrive in A&E where McGonagall motions for them to join her.

“Everyone ready?“ The older woman asks the doctors and nurses assembled in front of her.

There’s a little chorus of tired _Yes, ma'am_ 's to which McGonagall shakes her head. “I see some of you are running on too few hours of sleep, but don’t worry you’re about to get a shot of adrenaline. Does anyone need a reminder on our mass-casuality protocoll?“

The faint sound of approaching sirens can be heard from outside.

“No, ma’am,“ they reply a bit louder this time.

The sound of the sirens is starting to get louder.

Lily gives Ava’s arm a last squeeze before she quickly lines up to put on her gear.

The man from the station is wiped from her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love hearing your thoughts and theories – I lap up every comment, so please don't feel shy and leave me one ☺️


	4. Pizzas and Other Temptations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to my boy Boris Johnson, whom I am always hating on in my fics, but alas, he's a Tory. I didn't think he'd be in the ICU when I publish this. I hope he gets well soon, so he can clean up the mess his party made in the first place. May this give you an epiphany instead of scarred lungs, Boris!

**ACT II: Something Wicked This Way Comes**

**SCENE III: Pizzas and Other Temptations**

While Lily had to fight herself to her lunch break in the morning, she doesn’t even notice missing her coffee break in the afternoon, barely registers tea time passing and is only interrupted in her flow around 6pm when McGonagall taps her shoulder and sends her off to go eat something.

She finds Mary in the nurses station, where several of their colleagues (who should’ve been off hours ago) are sleeping on sofas, carts and, in the case of one male nurse, on the table.

“Hullo there,“ Mary greets her. She attempts a wave but her arm just falls down half-way.

Lily remains standing in the door way.“McGonagall sent me away to eat dinner.“

“It’s about time,“ Mary says, “but you know, you won’t find anything here. Those animals went after my snack drawer three hours ago.“ Mary points to the other nurses, a disdainful look on her face.

Lily snorts. “Your hiding places keep getting worse.“

“I shouldn’t have to hide anything at all.“

“You shouldn’t bring the S’mores flavoured Pop-Tarts to work with you, is what you shouldn't.“

“Still not my fault,“ Mary insists, “in fact, let it be known that I hold Boris Johnson personally responsible for this day.“

“Aren’t you holding him responsible for everything these days?“

“Well, he _is_ the Prime Minister after all.“

“Thanks, Johnson.“

“Nah, that’s too American – we’ll say _Nice one, Boris_ instead.“

“That does have a certain ring to it,“ Lily laughs. “Nice one, Boris – huh I like it.“

Mary’s chair squeaks as she leans back in it. “I’ll have it trending on Twitter in no time.“

“Are you off?“ Lily asks surprised.

Mary answers by raising an eyebrow.

“Ah yes, of course not.“ Lily shifts from one foot to another. “That would mean enough staff or something.“

“And who needs enough staff? What a strange concept,“ Mary drawls.

They give eachother a nod of overworked solidarity.

“So, where do you think I’ll find something to eat?“ Lily asks, although she is not sure she should. She always gets tired right after eating and she knows she’ll be needed for another few hours.

“The cafeteria was raided by the children’s parents, I’m afraid,“ Mary muses, “but we could quickly go out and get something?“

Lily shakes her head. “I only have fortyfive minutes. Besides, if you let me out the front door, I might make a run for it and flee to my bed.“

“Oh dear,“ Mary coos, “you’re really in low battery mode.“

“Holding on to that one percent, more like,“ Lily scoffs.

“Ah but that last percent is always the strongest one, innit?“ Mary grins.

Lily just shakes her head. “I could be home now, you know.“

Mary nods. “I know, love.“

They are interrupted by a breathless Ava appearing next to Lily, who didn’t hear the other surgeon approach whatsoever.

“You lot hungry?“ she asks them. She is holding five huge pizza boxes and the delicious smell that comes from them almost knocks Lily off her feet.

“Yes, ma’am!“ Mary exclaims with almost hysterical excitement.

“Come on then,“ Ava laughs and nods her head in the direction of the cafeteria.

Lily grabs two of the boxes. “Here, let me help you with that.“

Ava looks back into the room. “Don’t you want to to wake them?“ she asks Mary.

“Nah,“ Mary replies, nose turned up, “they had three boxes of pop tarts and five bags of crisps between them. They’re good.“

Ava’s eyes go wide. “Oh.“

“They nicked her snacks and she’s salty,“ Lily whispers to Ava.

“That’s not true,“ Mary calls over her shoulder, “I’m too low on sodium to be salty at this point.“

She quickly leads them to the cafeteria, let’s herself fall onto one of the sofas in the back and holds out her hands expectantly. “Come to Mama, you sweet little babies!“

“No dessert pizzas, I’m afraid,“ Ava laughs and hands Mary one of the boxes.

“I wanna say that I’d hate you for that, but I’d eat a three day old pizza hawaii from Domino’s right now,“ Lily sighs.

“I wouldn’t ever do that to you,“ Ava says with mock seriousness, “and those are from Martucci, so pineapple is out of the question.“

“You got us pizza from Martucci?“ Mary gaps. “You got us the _good_ pizza?“

“Of course,“ Ava says, “we deserve it.“

Lily’s mouth is starting to water instantly; L’Antica Pizzeria da Martucci is one of their favorite restaurants. Unfortunately, their prices make it a rare treat. She glances over at Mary who looks as lovestruck as Lily must’ve that morning.

“I need your middle name, Ava,“ Mary says with a grave voice.

Ava looks startled for a moment. “Uhm, it’s Helena, why do you ask?“

“Because you buying us our favorite pizza has given me clarity,“ she says dramatically and gets down on one knee, “Ava Helena Bates, will you marry me?“

Lily rolls her eyes at Mary’s antics and Ava starts to giggle .

“Middle name?“ she demands between giggles.

“Anne,“ Mary replies solemnly.

“Well then, Mary Anne Macdonald,“ Ava announces, “I do accept your hand in marriage.“

They all laugh as Mary slips an imaginary ring on Ava’s finger who proceeds to show it off to Lily.

“You have food.“

They turn around, still giggling, to find Sanam looking at the boxes with glassy eyes.

“Not just food, Dr. Fazal,“ Mary scolds and throws an arm around her new fiancee, “those are pizzas from Martucci.“

Sanam is either unimpressed by that or so hungry that it doesn’t matter to her. “Can I have food?“ she asks instead with a monotonous voice.

“Yes, of course,“ Ava laughs, “I have enough for everyone.“ She starts pointing at different boxes. “Those two are Margerita, this one is Prosciutto e Funghi, this one is Quatro Stagioni and that one Ortolana.“

“What’s Ortolana?“

“Just vegetables. Aubergine and Zucchini, I think.“

Sanam nods, grabs the vegetarian pizza and pops the lid open. Another wave of the delicious smell hits them and Lily has to make sure that she isn’t accidentally salivating all over herself. They all sit down on the squishy sofas and dig in and Lily is pretty sure it’s the best meal she’s ever had.

“I think, I might start crying,“ she announces after the third slice.

Two ambulance drivers, a pediatrician and a medical lab technician have joined them – the pizzas are family size after all.

Ava giggles. “You wish you had proposed to me first now, don’t you?“ she asks cheekily, winking at Mary who has lost all decorum and is eating two slices at once.

Lily huffs. “People get engaged all the time. That doesn’t mean anything.“

“Don’t you dare, Evans,“ Mary mumbles with her mouth full, “she’s mine.“

“Those pizzas really are heavenly,“ Hestia Jones, their lab technician, throws in, “what do we owe you for this outstanding meal?“

Ava quickly shakes her head. “You don’t owe me anything, it’s my treat.“

Several people try to protest but Ava remains adamant. “No, really, I mean it! It’s my first day and you’ve all been so welcoming, despite the stress. Let me do this.“

Lily catches Sanam mouthing the word _rich_ although the other surgeon’s eyes are closed. Lily had assumed she was in a food coma and taking a nap. She sighs but says nothing. Ava _does_ seem to come from money, because although the Evelina pays them a solid salary, Lily still couldn’t afford inviting half their colleagues to have the most expensive pizza in town.

It doesn’t bother her though.

Lily was paired up with Ava all day and not once did the Blonde come across as snobbish or anything else one might usually expect from the upper class. She has worked as hard as any one of them and after the initial shock, she proved that she could be level headed when needed, assisting Lily without a single mistake or moment of hesitation.

She was funny, kind and obviously generous – a trait that seemed ineherent to her as a person, because she demonstrated it in everything she did.

Lily decides that she would firmly ignore Sanam on the matter.

They all thank Ava and fall into a comfortable silence, relishing their full bellies.

Lily has just finished her fifth slice when Ava looks up from her phone with a shy expression and clears her throat. “Actually, would you mind if we take a photo? I’d like to remember this.“

“Oh, that’s a great idea,“ Hestia says enthusiastically.

They all scoot together and Ava sets up her iPhone on a nearby chair. They take several series of photos and only stop when their increasingly ridiculous poses start to attract the attention of some patients who are lingering in the cafeteria.

“You have to send me those,“ Lily laughs.

Mary quickly takes out her phone. “Wait, I’ll add Ava to our WhatsApp group, that way we’ll have them all.“

One by one they all go back to work, and yes, physically Lily feels even more tired than before, but mentally she is calm, not as ridiculously anxious as she’s been all day. She manages to make great progress on their remaining patients and by the end of the night, they can send home almost half of the children who had been hospitalized.

“Good work, Dr. Evans,“ McGonagall murmurs after having inspected the work she did on a burn a little boy suffered. “I think it’s time you, Dr. Fazal and Dr. Bates pack up and call it a day.“

“Thank you, ma’am,“ she replies beaming at the praise.

She turns to leave but McGonagall calls her name. “Yes, ma’am?“

“And please be so good and take Macdonald with you.“

Lily blinks, confused. “Ma’am?“

“I don’t know what was in those pizzas she keeps telling me about, but that girl has far too much energy considering she’s been here for sixteen hours,“ her boss sighs, “get her home before she starts decorating my office.“

Lily has to bite her lip to keep herself from snorting. “Will do, Dr. McGonagall. Have good night.“

“And you, Dr. Evans.“

She nods before turning slowly into the next hallway and then, altough McGonagall can probably still hear her, starts sprinting to the Mountain ward. She finds Mary and Ava pouring over a patient’s chart, speaking in low tones. Lily can barely contain her excitement but manages to wait until the two have finished up.

Mary spots her first and shuffles Ava out of the room, she closes the door quietly before turning to Lily. “Are you here to tell me what I think you’ll tell me?“

“Yes I am,“ Lily almost squeals.

Mary grabs her forearms. “We can go home?“

“We can go home!“

“Are you sure that’s what McGonagall said?“

“She mentioned you specifically!“

“We are going home,“ Mary cackles and starts to jump up and down.

Lily is right there with her. “I know, I can’t believe it!“

“Do you think my bed will remember me?“

“Do you think we still remember how to get there?“

Mary stops jumping and collapses against Lily’s shoulder with a snort. “We’re going home.“

Lily puts her head on top of Mary’s. “I mean, we’ll try.“

“Tired,“ Mary mumbles.

“I don’t want to interrupt your moment,“ Ava says shyly, “but maybe we should get going before you two fall asleep on top of eachother.“

“Or before they find a reason to keep us longer,“ Mary yawns and disentangles herself from her best friend.

“I’ll go find Sanam to tell her she can leave too,“ Lily informs them and drags herself towards the ICU.

“Alright, see you outside,“ Mary mumbles.

Fifteen minutes later and freshly peeled out of their scrubs, the four are finally out of the building and walking towards the station. Lily is hanging onto Mary’s arm, occassionally closing her eyes and enjoying the cold air on her face.

“What are you lot up to tomorrow?“ Ava suddenly asks.

“Sleeping.“ Lily replies instantly.

“And eating.“ Mary adds.

Ava laughs. “All day?“

“Why do you ask?“

“Well, I’ve wanted to invite you, actually.“

There’s a nervous undertone to Ava’s voice that catches Lily's attention.

“Invite us?“

“I’m throwing a little party.“ Ava isn’t quite looking at any of them. “Nothing big, just some friends, good food. Probably some board games,“ she adds nervously.

Mary is about to open her mouth when Sanam beats her to it: “I’ll come!“

Lily can’t quite hide her surprise at that but Ava seems pleased.

“Really? I’d love to have you there and meet my friends.“

It takes Lily a moment to make sense of the uneasy feeling that has popped up in her chest but when she sees how Mary is looking at her, it suddenly hits her.

Meet her friends – _he_ would be there _._

“We’d love to hang out with you,“ Mary says for the both of them, saving her from having to reply, “but I’m not sure we can stomach a party. Maybe another time?“

Ava looks dejected but she tries to smile nevertheless. “Oh, of course, I understand.“

“So when’s the party?“ Sanam asks with a suspicious amount of enthusiasm.

“You can come any time after 5pm.“

“5pm it is!“

“I’ll text you the location.“

“Great! I’ll be there!“

Mary throws Lily a look but says nothing.

They enter the station and Lily feels her mouth going dry. She can’t believe she has come full circle. Despite all the ways she has tried to rationalize her behavior during the day, standing here, where she first saw him, Lily still experiences the sensation of getting slowly electrocuted.

“Anyone else going North?“ Sanam asks though she only looks at Ava.

“Hm, no I think I can only take the District line,“ Ava says with a look towards the tube map.

Sanam nods. “Okay, see you tomorrow then!“

“Have a good night and get home safe!“

Lily and Mary get on the East bound District line with Ava, who keeps rechecking the map every few seconds. Their colleague obviously hasn’t lived here for very long yet.

“Ava, where do you need to get off?“ Mary finally asks.

She sighs. “Kew Gardens. But I’m never sure if I’m on the right train, because the line branches off at Turnham Green.“

Mary’s lips twitch at the mention of the posh area but she, like Lily, seems determined to ignore it. “As long as the train is going towards Richmond, you’ll be fine.“

Ava smiles apologetically. “Sorry for being so on edge, but I think I might start crying if I get on a wrong train now.“

“You’re on the right one, don’t worry,“ Lily reassures her.

Their new colleague nods, but keeps her eyes glued to the map above them. They all sit in silence. Ava re-reading the map, Mary texting, Lily torn between staying awake and thinking about James or falling asleep if she tries to clear her mind.

Just before they arrive at Hammersmith Mary hauls Lily to her feet.

“Are you getting off here?“ Ava asks surprised.

“Yep, that is, if Lily can walk. Otherwise we’ll just ride back and forth until Monday morning and get back to work.“

Ava laughs at Mary’s snappy comment, though Lily doesn’t feel more motivated to move. The train comes to a sharp halt and nearly sends them both stumbling. Lily tries not to think about the fact, that when the same thing happened that morning, Ava was right next to her.

How could she have been so silly?

“Have a good weekend, Ava,“ Mary calls and effectively snaps her out of it.

“You too – and hey, I’ll text you my address, in case you change your mind about coming.“

Lily gives her a court nod in response before Mary pulls her onto the platform and towards the next exit. The doors close again and they wave to Ava as the District line takes off. There’s a strong gust of wind and then the train is gone.

“Let’s go,“ Mary urges but Lily doesn’t move.

“You said, I’ll never see him again.“

“Lily…“ Mary says warningly, shaking her head.

Lily turns away from the station and clears her throat. “Right.“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading – please leave comments, they're the manna upon which my meek soul feeds ♥️


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